BFI Inside the Archive Exhibition at The Harris
Friday 23rd October 2026 12:00 PM to Thursday 5th November 2026 12:00 PM
Harris Museum & Art Gallery, Preston PR1 2PP
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Come and find out how a film archive works in this free exhibition - supported by the BFI Screen Heritage Fund.
Inside the Archive Exhibition at The Harris
Come and find out how a film archive works in this free exhibition.
Alongside the Threads of Memory screening and panel discussion (22 October), the Inside the Archive exhibition will be on display at the Harris Museum & Art Gallery from 23 October – 5 November 2026.
Attendees of the screening and panel will have an opportunity to preview the exhibit during the event on 22 October.
The BFI National Archive looks after one of the largest and most important collections of film and television in the world. Its teams of experts ensure that the collections are preserved and developed for future generations and made widely accessible to today’s audiences. This multimedia installation enables visitors to explore this work and learn about the people who make it possible.
One of the Archive’s most famous collections is Mitchell & Kenyon's Edwardian Britain. These amazing films, lost for at least 80 years, offer something close to time travel. Miraculously discovered in a basement in 1994, the films provide stunning images of ordinary life in late-Victorian and Edwardian Britain.
As part of the Inside the Archive Exhibition, the BFI National Archive is delighted to bring a selection of these films home to the city in which they were filmed. Capturing factory workers, churchgoers, schoolchildren, sportsmen and spectators across Preston, these relaxed Edwardians laugh, grin and point at the camera – brought back to life, as no painting or photograph ever could.
The Inside the Archive Exhibition will be at the Harris Museum & Art Gallery from 3 October – 5 November 2026.
Inside the Archive is supported by the BFI Screen Heritage Fund, awarding National Lottery Good Cause Funding.
